


Purplebelly

by bookaddict43



Category: Firefly
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-01-14
Updated: 2009-01-14
Packaged: 2017-10-02 04:35:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bookaddict43/pseuds/bookaddict43
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A short missing scene from Bushwhacked, because I love Kaylee’s indignation.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Purplebelly

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: Firefly and all it's characters are the property of Joss Whedon.

“Serenity is not a junker.”

“I know that girl,” Jayne grinned at her. The mechanic hadn’t stopped talking ‘bout the purple-belly’s words since they left the cargo bay.

She’d talked all the way through the docking tunnel, grumbled away on the transport and hadn’t even noticed when the crew got separated. He’d wound up with Kaylee, Inara was with Wash, Zoë and the Shepherd were together and the Captain was on his own.

He figured the hun dans were trying to keep them apart so they couldn’t get their stories straight. Snorting under his breath Jayne glanced toward the soldier propping up the door; if he were waiting to hear any secrets or for them to start confessing crimes, he’d be waiting forever. Jayne didn’t feel like talking any and Kaylee was too worked up ‘bout Serenity to think of anything else.

Seeing the fella’s exasperation and knowing it were her way of fighting fear, he let her vent.

Her care for the ship was one of the reasons he was still on board. Since first shipping out in the black he’d been on some of the worst maintained boats in the ‘verse. He’d suffered through no water for days, air-conditioning failure, no stove or refrigeration. You never knew if you were gonna wake up breathing or not.

With Kaylee in charge none of that were ever gonna happen. The air flowed clean, the temperature was just right, all the pumps and water pipes did their thing and the kitchen stuff worked. She kept the engine turning even when Mal didn’t let her get the good parts.

“Miss Frye?” The Commander type appeared at the door, “Step this way please.”

Kaylee swished past him, nose in the air and not a bit intimidated. Jayne could tell the Alliance officer weren’t used to that.

The man wouldn’t know what had hit him. He’d probably already had to listen to Wash doing his warrior woman talk and to watch Zoë doing her stonewalling thing. Now he was going to have to listen to Kaylee’s engineering lesson. A fate, the Captain said, only for the strong.

Jayne himself didn’t mind listening to the girl talk. He didn’t understand more’n one word in ten when she got talking engineering; but it didn’t matter he just liked hearing her.

When the Commander returned Kaylee to the room it didn’t look like he’d enjoyed hearing her. He was looking kinda poleaxed Jayne thought delightedly.

“Did you set him straight?” he asked.

“You bet I did.” She nodded indignantly. “Calling my girl a junker.”

Jayne never worried ‘bout how she talked ‘bout the ship either. Some folks might think it a mite creepifying how Kaylee treated Serenity almost like a person. But he treated his girls like that so he understood the need to feel close to yer tools.

“I told him all about what real junk is,” Kaylee went on.

Jayne raised his eyebrows and smirked at her. The girl’s sassy behaviour toward the Alliance officer had given him an idea. When it was his turn – he was planning on sayin’ nothing. He were just gonna sit there and let the man stew. That’d confound him totally…

His plan set, Jayne relaxed back against the seat, and let the soothing murmur of engine parts and indignation wash over him.


End file.
